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Thread started 12/14/10 6:14am

Identity

George Clinton Sues The Black Eyed Peas Over Sample

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December 14, 2010

George Clinton has filed a copyright lawsuit against members of the Black Eyed Peas, their Universal Music Group label and Cherry Lane music publisher for allegedly sampling his song "(Not Just) Knee Deep" on a Grammy-award nominated album.

According to the complaint, filed on Friday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, the funk pioneer's song wound up in remixes of the Black Eyed Peas' "Shut Up," first released in 2003.

Clinton's original song appeared on Funkadelic's 1979 album Uncle Jam Wants You and ran more than 15 minutes long.

An edited version reached No. 1 on the Billboard Black Singles chart, besting Michael Jackson's first solo hit. "(Not Just) Knee Deep" was later sampled by artists such as De La Soul, LL Cool J, MC Hammer, Snoop Dogg, and 2Pac.

Clinton has become more aggressive on the copyright front in past years with several cases involving his intellectual property.

He's enjoyed some success in court, getting a judge to acknowledge his ownership in the legendary phrase, "Bow wow wow yippie yo yippie yay" and winning a ruling that record labels violated his rights by re-releasing four of his 1970s albums.

These victories seem to be emboldening him on the legal front.

He's now going after sampling, a music technique that's technically illegal from a copyright standpoint (depending on the nature of the use), but also something that is rarely pursued. Most musicians try to clear samples anyway, but violators have often been given a free pass.

According to the complaint, Clinton became aware of the Black Eyed Peas' use of his old song when a record producer for the band came to him in 1999 and requested a license for a new remix of "Shut Up."

Clinton says he rejected the request, not knowing at the time that his song had already been sampled by the band in a prior version. He says the sample was used by the Peas anyway on the album The E.N.D, which was nominated in 2009 for a an album of the year Grammy.

Clinton is seeking maximum statutory damages of $150,000 per infringement and an injunction prohibiting further distribution of the infringing song.

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Reply #1 posted 12/14/10 6:24am

andykeen

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Take those fools to the docks Clinton...You rock!


Keenmeister
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Reply #2 posted 12/14/10 6:34am

SoulAlive

Clinton's original song appeared on Funkadelic's 1979 album Uncle Jam Wants You and ran more than 15 minutes long.

An edited version reached No. 1 on the Billboard Black Singles chart, besting Michael Jackson's first solo hit.

falloff After all these years,some people still think that "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" was Michael's first solo hit.

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Reply #3 posted 12/14/10 6:36am

OnlyNDaUsa

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i sometimes sing "Bow wow wow yippie yo yippie yay" and it seems most of the time people thing it is snoop dog... confused

"Keep on shilling for Big Pharm!"
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Reply #4 posted 12/14/10 6:41am

Empress

andykeen said:

Take those fools to the docks Clinton...You rock!

Right on! I hate the BEP.

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Reply #5 posted 12/14/10 8:26am

Dancelot

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OnlyNDaUsa said:

i sometimes sing "Bow wow wow yippie yo yippie yay" and it seems most of the time people thing it is snoop dog... confused

but that's Atmoic Dog and not Knee Deep chair

Vanglorious... this is protected by the red, the black, and the green. With a key... sissy!
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Reply #6 posted 12/14/10 8:32am

OnlyNDaUsa

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Dancelot said:

OnlyNDaUsa said:

i sometimes sing "Bow wow wow yippie yo yippie yay" and it seems most of the time people thing it is snoop dog... confused

but that's Atmoic Dog and not Knee Deep chair

yeah I know... but that case was also mentioned in the article

"Keep on shilling for Big Pharm!"
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Reply #7 posted 12/14/10 9:14am

Dancelot

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OnlyNDaUsa said:

Dancelot said:

but that's Atmoic Dog and not Knee Deep chair

yeah I know... but that case was also mentioned in the article

oh... well, I stopped reading at Black Eyed Peas razz

Vanglorious... this is protected by the red, the black, and the green. With a key... sissy!
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Reply #8 posted 12/14/10 9:31am

nursev

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

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Reply #9 posted 12/14/10 9:48am

OnlyNDaUsa

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Dancelot said:

OnlyNDaUsa said:

yeah I know... but that case was also mentioned in the article

oh... well, I stopped reading at Black Eyed Peas razz

where is that folding chair!?

"Keep on shilling for Big Pharm!"
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Reply #10 posted 12/14/10 9:48am

OnlyNDaUsa

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nursev said:

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

i bet it has more to do with respect than the money.

"Keep on shilling for Big Pharm!"
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Reply #11 posted 12/14/10 9:51am

nursev

OnlyNDaUsa said:

nursev said:

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

i bet it has more to do with respect than the money.

Even more of a reason to sue wink

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Reply #12 posted 12/14/10 9:58am

Timmy84

Get that money, Dr. Funkenstein!

[Edited 12/14/10 10:13am]

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Reply #13 posted 12/14/10 10:08am

Shango

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^ Sir Noze ^ cool

Bootsy is Starchild

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Reply #14 posted 12/14/10 10:13am

Timmy84

Shango said:

^ Sir Noze ^ cool

Bootsy is Starchild

Oh yeah THAT'S RIGHT... maybe I should've said "Uncle Jam" or "Dr. Funkenstein". smile

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Reply #15 posted 12/14/10 10:14am

Shango

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fro

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Reply #16 posted 12/14/10 10:32am

Cinnie

Will.I.Am cleared "Not Just Knee Deep" on a 2006 song for Kelis "What's That Right Here". He samples often and always clears them, so I wouldn't be surprised if someone else did the remix of Shut Up or something.
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Reply #17 posted 12/14/10 10:34am

Timmy84

Cinnie said:

Will.I.Am cleared "Not Just Knee Deep" on a 2006 song for Kelis "What's That Right Here". He samples often and always clears them, so I wouldn't be surprised if someone else did the remix of Shut Up or something.

Someone probably rushed it out and didn't think no one would notice. Too bad. lol

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Reply #18 posted 12/14/10 10:37am

MidniteMagnet

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Why are poeple still sampling this goddamn song?? GC has like a thousand songs to choose from and it's always the same damn one. Soooo lazy.

"Keep in mind that I'm an artist...and I'm sensitive about my shit."--E. Badu
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Reply #19 posted 12/14/10 10:38am

Timmy84

MidniteMagnet said:

Why are poeple still sampling this goddamn song?? GC has like a thousand songs to choose from and it's always the same damn one. Soooo lazy.

That's how music is now: sampling the same damn song until they milk the damn udders out of that motherfucker.

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Reply #20 posted 12/14/10 11:15am

TonyVanDam

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nursev said:

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

nod

N.W.A.

Public Enemy

Ice Cube

Dr.Dre

Eazy-E

M.C. Ren

Snoop Dogg

Yo-Yo

Guy

Blackstreet

M.C. Hammer

De La Soul

Salt-N-Pepa

New Kids On The Block/NKOTB

Bell Biv Devoe

The Spice Girls

Digital Underground

En Vogue

2pac

Prince/ prince

Spice-1

Too $hort

...........and shitloads of other artists from the world of rap/hip-hop & electronic dance sub-genres that are NOT accounted for like they need to be! wink

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Reply #21 posted 12/14/10 11:19am

Timmy84

TonyVanDam said:

nursev said:

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

nod

N.W.A.

Public Enemy

Ice Cube

Dr.Dre

Eazy-E

M.C. Ren

Snoop Dogg

Yo-Yo

Guy

Blackstreet

M.C. Hammer

De La Soul

Salt-N-Pepa

New Kids On The Block/NKOTB

Bell Biv Devoe

The Spice Girls

Digital Underground

En Vogue

2pac

Prince/ prince

Spice-1

Too $hort

...........and shitloads of other artists from the world of rap/hip-hop & electronic dance sub-genres that are NOT accounted for like they need to be! wink

If James was still alive, he would've been suing those folks too. lol He complained as late as 2002 that he still wasn't get paid from the samples.

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Reply #22 posted 12/14/10 1:08pm

MickyDolenz

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Timmy84 said:

MidniteMagnet said:

Why are poeple still sampling this goddamn song?? GC has like a thousand songs to choose from and it's always the same damn one. Soooo lazy.

That's how music is now: sampling the same damn song until they milk the damn udders out of that motherfucker.

Like Funky Drummer, Amen Brother, Stay With Me, In The Air Tonight, and Between The Sheets. I recall Jackie Jackson yelling "Can You Feel It!" from the Jacksons live album being used a lot too.

You can take a black guy to Nashville from right out of the cotton fields with bib overalls, and they will call him R&B. You can take a white guy in a pin-stripe suit who’s never seen a cotton field, and they will call him country. ~ O. B. McClinton
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Reply #23 posted 12/14/10 1:35pm

deebee

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Identity said:

[From the article] He's enjoyed some success in court, getting a judge to acknowledge his ownership in the legendary phrase, "Bow wow wow yippie yo yippie yay" and winning a ruling that record labels violated his rights by re-releasing four of his 1970s albums.

It amuses me greatly to imagine George going to court to fight for legal ownership of this phrase. biggrin That there's never been a TV movie about the case is surely an opportunity missed.

"Not everything that is faced can be changed; but nothing can be changed until it is faced." - James Baldwin
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Reply #24 posted 12/14/10 1:38pm

Cinnie

TonyVanDam said:

Dr.Dre

How many times as a producer did he alone replay the Knee Deep bassline? lol

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Reply #25 posted 12/14/10 1:47pm

TonyVanDam

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Cinnie said:

TonyVanDam said:

Dr.Dre

How many times as a producer did he alone slowly replay the Knee Deep bassline? lol

There, THAT^ is more honest! mr.green

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Reply #26 posted 12/14/10 1:49pm

Timmy84

TonyVanDam said:

Cinnie said:

How many times as a producer did he alone slowly replay the Knee Deep bassline? lol

There, THAT^ is more honest! mr.green

lol

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Reply #27 posted 12/14/10 1:53pm

Harlepolis

nursev said:

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

Yeah, this is def a first.

Good for him, bout time her attempted to take control of his catalog even if he don't own his masters,,,,,which I hope he will someday.

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Reply #28 posted 12/14/10 2:50pm

DesireeNevermi
nd

TonyVanDam said:

nursev said:

Bout damn time George sues somebody lol Folks have been using his songs for years.

nod

N.W.A.

Public Enemy

Ice Cube

Dr.Dre

Eazy-E

M.C. Ren

Snoop Dogg

Yo-Yo

Guy

Blackstreet

M.C. Hammer

De La Soul

Salt-N-Pepa

New Kids On The Block/NKOTB

Bell Biv Devoe

The Spice Girls

Digital Underground

En Vogue

2pac

Prince/ prince

Spice-1

Too $hort

...........and shitloads of other artists from the world of rap/hip-hop & electronic dance sub-genres that are NOT accounted for like they need to be! wink

sad Did George not get paid by any of these artists for sampling his music and borrowing **cough** stealing his lyrics?

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Reply #29 posted 12/14/10 2:53pm

PoppyBros

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Empress said:

andykeen said:

Take those fools to the docks Clinton...You rock!

Right on! I hate the BEP.

lol

I HATE BEP! machinegun

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